As we turn the corner on the second decade of biologic use for rheumatic disorders, a reappraisal of approach in our communication with patients is due. In practice, the impact these agents have on patients’ lives justifies the friction rheumatologists face when connecting patients to them. You can understand why older rheumatologists who apprenticed on…
There are moments that the words don’t reach There is suffering too terrible to name You hold your child as tight as you can And push away the unimaginable —Lin Manuel Miranda A friend of mine was killed a few days ago. By the time you read this column, the scars will have already started…
The ACR has elected a small group of division directors from across the country to serve on the Division Directors Special Committee. The goals of this committee: to better understand the needs of academic rheumatology programs and share with these programs new resources from the ACR and other organizations to support the needs of those…
This year’s RheumPAC members are excited to build on their 2018 accomplishments. In 2018, we raised $144,000 from 323 individual investors. Thank you to everyone who invested and to those who supported advocacy for ACR/ARP, its members and our patients. We also introduced a new way for non-individuals (e.g., rheumatology practices, state and local rheumatology…
Ever wonder how magicians know what card you pulled out of the deck, make objects vanish or unlink and link solid metal rings? Christopher Morris, MD, knows how these tricks are performed, but he won’t tell you. A rheumatologist who has been in private practice for 25 years at Arthritis Associates, Kingsport, Tenn., he has…
Bob and Jan Richardson’s separate paths to physical therapy and rheumatology involve wrestling and horses—although not at the same time. Their intertwining stories also involve a fair amount of serendipity. Mr. Bob Richardson For Bob Richardson, PT, MEd, the path started in the late 1950s, when he was wrapping up a fulfilling college wrestling career…
One of my fellows could take better care of his patients if it weren’t for the attendings getting in his way. Or so he tells me. I can hear the howls of protest already. This statement isn’t fair—it is too broad, it doesn’t fairly depict the nuances of the situation or his point of view. First,…
As physicians, we play an important role in the well-being of patients and serve as advocates to ensure our patient receives adequate healthcare services. Unfortunately, many of the policy decisions that govern our medical practices are made by bureaucrats with inadequate input from physicians. Certain constraints placed on the way we should practice medicine have…
“It is with a profoundly heavy heart that I share with you the sad news that we have lost one of our most beloved leaders at NIH. Steve Katz, MD, PhD, the long-time director of the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS), died early this morning after suffering a catastrophic stroke….
Two years ago, Carla Guggenheim, DO, a rheumatologist in private practice in Lansing, Mich., was recovering from extensive shoulder surgery when her dance teacher asked her to perform a complex Indian piece from the Bharatanatyam Repertory at a gala showcasing graduate dance students. Because of her surgery, Dr. Guggenheim agreed to dance only 90 seconds…